A major challenge facing hospitals today is the timely identification of disease and appropriate engagement of patients and families required to offer patients appropriate care and treatment in order to avoid the progression of existing disease as well as the occurrence of a new adverse event, as well as to ensure that appropriate interventions and resources are available and deployed according to patients' needs.
Many national agencies, such as the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI), National Quality Forum (NQF), Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), and Joint Commission have demonstrated their prioritization of high quality patient care through clearly articulated performance and quality measurement programs that incorporate disease-focused and patient-focused process and outcomes measures. These metrics are tied to standards that currently and will continue to impact the national performance-based incentive and penalty framework designed to realign efforts and focus on quality of care.